Electric power charging of vehicle based on charging time schedule

• US 10,486,540 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2017
• Issued: 11/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Tsuchiya, Yoshiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Grant, Robert
• Assistant Examiner(s): Trischler, John T
• Application Number:
  US15/856,894
• Publication Number:
  US 20180194238A1
• Time in Patent Office: 698 Days
• Field of Search: 320109, 320155
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/58 Departure time prediction
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/62 in response to charging parameters, e.g. current, voltage or electrical charge
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/64 Optimising energy costs, e.g. responding to electricity rates
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/66 Data transfer between charging stations and vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 11/00 Circuit arrangements for providing service supply to auxiliaries of stations in which electric power is generated, distributed or converted
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/167 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for supporting the interoperability of electric or hybrid vehicles, i.e. smartgrids as interface for battery charging of electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

An electronic control unit is configured to start external charging in accordance with a time schedule. The electronic control unit is configured to acquire information about electric power rates of electric power supplied from the power source outside the vehicle in each specified time slot. The electronic control unit is configured to determine the time schedule so as to execute the external charging continuously from a start to an end of the external charging without stopping the external charging and execute the external charging at the time when the electric power cost in a case where the external charging is continuously executed is the lowest.

Claims

1. A charge controller that controls execution of external charging to charge an electric storage device mounted on a vehicle with a power source outside the vehicle, the charge controller comprising:

an electronic control unit configured to;

i) start the external charging in accordance with a time schedule;

ii) acquire information about electric power rates of electric power supplied from the power source in each specified time slot;

iii) determine whether in a request time schedule set in accordance with a request from a user, a total number of stops of the external charging during a period from a start to an end of the external charging exceeds a threshold; and

iv) determine a second time schedule where the external charging is executed continuously from a start to an end of the external charging without stopping the external charging and an electric power cost in a case where the external charging is continuously executed is the lowest based on the information about electric power rates, in response to determining that the total number of stops of the external charging during the period from the start to the end of the external charging exceeds the threshold.

2. The charge controller according to claim 1, wherein the electronic control unit is configured to notify the user of a change of the time schedule from the request time schedule to the second time schedule.

3. The charge controller according to claim 1, wherein a device that operates with execution and stop of the external charging is provided in a charge path extending from the power source to the electric storage device.

4. The charge controller according to claim 3, wherein:

the device includes a relay; and

the electronic control unit is configured to execute processing of determining the second time schedule when a total number of times of operation of the relay exceeds a threshold.

5. The charge controller according to claim 4, wherein the electronic control unit is configured to notify the user of a change of the time schedule from the request time schedule to the second time schedule.

6. A charge control method for controlling execution of external charging to charge an electric storage device mounted on a vehicle with a power source outside the vehicle, the charge control method comprising:

acquiring information about electric power rates of electric power supplied from the power source in each specified time slot;

determining whether in a request time schedule set in accordance with a request from a user, a total number of stops of the external charging during a period from a start to an end of the external charging exceeds a threshold;

determining a second time schedule where the external charging is executed continuously from a start to an end of the external charging without stopping the external charging and an electric power cost in a case where the external charging is continuously executed is the lowest based on the information about electric power rates, in response to determining that the total number of stops of the external charging during the period from the start to the end of the external charging exceeds the threshold; and

starting the external charging in accordance with the second time schedule.